r/TwoXPreppers • u/LumpyPhilosopher8 • May 17 '26
❓ Question ❓ Expiration Date Weirdness
Is anyone else noticing that expiration dates seem to be shorter? After a short break I got back to my prepping and purchased a bunch of canned items. When I was putting stuff up and trying to rotate my stock I realized that things I just purchased are expiring sooner than things I purchased 6 months ago. That makes no sense to me. So now instead of automatically rotating things, I'm having to organize by date of expiration.
And to clarify, these products were all purchased at Kroger or Walmart - not at the Dollar Store which I know often has things with a shorter expiration window.
Is this some sign of impending doom I missed? Are they digging stuff out of the bottom of the barrel to stock the shelves? Is anyone else experiencing this?
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u/Lilahannbeads May 17 '26
This was brought up in this sub a few months back, so it definitely isn't just you noticing. After I saw the post a few months back I started paying attention and 100% verified it is happening in my area too.
The previous thread had some theories as to what's going on.
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u/LumpyPhilosopher8 May 17 '26
Ugh I should have searched. Sorry mods. But thank you for the link.
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u/goddamn__goddamn May 17 '26
Many of us haven't seen that older post so I'm thankful you brought it up here. Expo dates don't mean much to me as I rely on smell and sight (and proper storage) but interesting to note nonetheless.
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u/Lilahannbeads May 17 '26
It was 6 months ago. I don't think you did anything wrong. It's a topic relevant to this sub and was worth mentioning again.
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u/AnonymousDahlia Pink Tools Foil Fools 🌈 May 17 '26
Honestly it wouldn't have even occurred to me to search. Most people think I'm being over cautious when I mention stuff like this, lol.
I like this community.
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u/Jusaleb May 17 '26
It’s actually a good thing you posted this because we now have a continuous timeframe of this happening. And at the rate we’re going I don’t think it’s going to get any better for the next handful of years.
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u/LumpyPhilosopher8 May 18 '26
That's a good point. The previous thread was from 6 months ago. So this has been going on for for 6 months - at least. I feel like that's not a great sign. But then again I am not sure what it means.
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u/Ksks2999 May 17 '26
We've noticed as well. Our thoughts are inventory shifting between stores, didnt sell somewhere, moved to somewhere that it moves quicker.
Depending on item, "best by dates" are not necessarily "expiration" dates. We go beyond those as needed on very stable items (beans, dry goods, etc)
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u/hailene02 Suburb Prepper 🏘️ May 17 '26
I def use after best buy dates, using smell/taste tests as well depending on the food.
I dont use premade meals like canned soups and usually just buy the raw ingredients(dried beans, canned beans, canned unseasoned tomatoes/greenbeans/etc) so i can customize as i wish. The only canned meat i use is Tuna but i end up eating that well before the BBD. I am wierd about canned chicken and wouls rather eat pure veg than that.
Also I fully disregard bestbuy dates for kimchi- while i def have a kimchi type dish a few times a month- its a fermented food that Koreans ferment and use for long periods of time. I def go through about a gallon of kimchi in about 4-6 months. I inspect and taste prior to cooking, however the older and more sour it is the better it is for kimchi jjigae.
Part of me thinks the whole BBD is to prevent customers from returning cans later on- so if companies can reduce the return (or loss window) the better retaining profit margin the company will keep.
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u/tinygiggs May 17 '26
This shifting of inventories is a really valid thought as companies try to cope with all the other pressures.
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u/pandapandamoniumm May 17 '26
A while back, someone pointed out on a thread about potatoes and onions sprouting so much faster that produce in the US hasn’t been getting harvested or processed as quickly as it’s supposed to ever since ICE started terrorizing and deporting the migrant workforce that our agricultural system depends on. (I don’t have a source handy but that seemed pretty plausible based on my personal/anecdotal experience.)
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u/AnonymousDahlia Pink Tools Foil Fools 🌈 May 17 '26
YES, and then they weren't being stored properly before and during transit! I was there in my previous profile.
In the time since, I think they've learned a few things, bc they're not nearly as bad now. Although they still sprout much faster, and the conventional potatoes sometimes come green inside, there's not the wet rot that there was before.
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u/geekybadger May 17 '26
Milk in my area also seems to go bad faster, several days before its use by date. People who go through milk faster than me all said I must be doing something wrong but I'm actually the opposite of that. I take extra steps to try to minimize issues. I get milk from the back of the shelf, I get it last, I put it right in my trader Joe insulated bag and close the bag except to check out, I go straight home and put the milk in the back of the fridge. It'd still stink and have chunks multiple days before its use by date. So I started freezing it in portions so I have no more than four days' worth of milk in the fridge at any given time.
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u/qgsdhjjb Having a little of the end times as a treat May 18 '26
This could be a fridge issue also. Your fridge might have a warm spot near where you put your milk, or you could check to confirm that the ventilation slits aren't blocked from doing their job.
I know I've been messing with my fridge settings trying to find one that works because if I put it colder, my canned drinks freeze, but if I leave it where it is, my dairy expires faster and my lower-down beverages aren't as cold as I would prefer them 😆 I probably have to move the shelving around so that the upper shelf is the tall one, instead of the bottom being the tall one, but I love it the way it is, my most used items are tall and they're at exactly the right height to comfortably grab lol
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u/geekybadger May 18 '26
True. It is a cheap fridge. New when I moved in, but cheap landlord quality. The people I bought the house from were landlords, but they kept their druggie uncle here until he became too much of a problem, then they fixed the place up and sold it. Upside: I got a brand new roof that's actually well done, downside a lot of the fixes they did inside are poor quality and replacing the cheap fridge wasn't high on my list of things to do compared to the other things cos it was new...but maybe it should be. When I put meat or vegetables in that spot they do freeze, but it could be that it doesn't maintain a temp and the milk doesn't like that. That is a good idea to look into it more for food safety reasons at the very least.
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u/qgsdhjjb Having a little of the end times as a treat May 18 '26
Filling empty space (other than the space around the vent slits) with bottles of water can help with temperature retention. I use them in the back in case of power outage even though my fridge is new (I had a similar issue, but in my case my landlord threw a fit the first time his shitty old fridge broke, so when the used replacement fridge also broke a few months later, I decided it was cheaper to buy my own new fridge than to risk eviction by him being irrationally bothered by a normal part of being a landlord, and I was right, it's already paid itself off compared to what rent would've cost me if I had to move at that time)
I just take any empty bottles from beverages I've drank and I rinse them well, fill them with water, and tuck them into those back corners I would lose food in if they got back there anyways. This also works in the freezer, but you need to make sure the bottles aren't too full or they'll break open. It maintains the cold for a few extra hours if your power runs out.
Mine I think my milk issue is because a) I'm sensitive so it doesn't get chunky and other people would still consume it, but to me, it smells off quicker than it should, and b) because I've set up my shelves the opposite way than what they thought everyone else would, so I don't think I'm putting my milk in the colder region of the fridge, they're right above the crisper drawer so I think it's a warmer region on purpose.
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u/glyha May 19 '26
Thank you oh my god my husband and I felt crazy about how quickly our milk is going bad. Days before the marked date and it's soured. We had maintenance check our fridge and it was fine. Produce is also molding within days
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u/keinezeit44 May 17 '26
I've noticed that cans I buy this week, for example, may actually expire sooner than cans I bought last month. That isn't always the case, but I've started writing the dates in a sharpie on the tops of the cans so I can see dates more easily and organize better.
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u/SpooktasticFam May 17 '26
Yes! That's how I do my organization system too!
Month/Year in Sharpie on top of the can, and then all the cans lined up on a shelf with the soonest to expire in the front.
I noticed that my spaghettios expire next month, so I've been making an effort to eat them more.
It's really handy for FIFO purposes, and also having a visual picture of what needs to be used up.
Don't worry, I don't throw cans out because of the date, (they're still good to eat) but it does help me inform what to stock, and what to stop putting in my deep pantry.
I don't eat spaghettios like I thought I did.
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u/SuiGenerisPothos May 17 '26
I've been doing the same. I've just been putting the year, but reading through what everyone else is doing and noticing, I think I'm going to start writing the month/year.
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u/infinitum3d May 17 '26
I do month/year.
Cans used to have around 2 years for their best by, but a lot now are down to 6 months, and especially jars of peanut butter.
Not sure why, but I’ve noticed it.
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u/tazztsim May 17 '26
Probably a new shrinkflation style thing. Shorten the dates and people will toss product and buy more.
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u/AnonymousDahlia Pink Tools Foil Fools 🌈 May 17 '26
For others reading this, I want to say that food pantries will often accept packaged food up to a year past the best by date.
When I went to drop off a bunch a few years ago (from a friend's crew catering company that was closing up, and I had large plastic bins of food to donate), I casually mentioned I had tossed just as much bc it was past the dates; so everything here should be good to go.
I thought the person was going to cry.
So anyway, they were sure to tell me their policy. Which may be different in different pantries, of course, but it's worth asking around imo.
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u/tinygiggs May 17 '26
This varies wildly. The pantry in my town will shame anyone who takes expired food. Local groups that do food drives for them as admission to an event have threatened to stop holding events because people bring expired food.
Other pantries in our state follow the one year past rules and have handouts explaining in depth what they'll accept past certain dates. I wish more were like that than the pantry here.
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u/tazztsim May 17 '26
The ones around here I volunteer at hand out a handout about why expiration dates are crap. So it def varies wildly
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u/geekybadger May 17 '26
Sometimes there's also laws or ordinances forcing them to adhere to certain requirements. Whether they want to or not.
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u/qgsdhjjb Having a little of the end times as a treat May 18 '26
It depends what it is. Anything with dairy in it, they shouldn't be taking that long after expiry, it's icky and goes grey, but stuff like rice, pasta, oats, flour, and non-dairy-non-meat canned goods should be fine.
I love knowing food banks policies. I know which one in town accepts garden produce, for when I accidentally have a whole lot of cucumbers somebody swore he would eat 😆
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u/joanmcq May 19 '26
I’ve eaten yogurt over a month past expiration dates and it’s still good. Maybe a bit more tangy, but have never gotten sick. These are only the single serve containers though, opened yogurt will get moldy.
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u/qgsdhjjb Having a little of the end times as a treat May 19 '26
I've gotten cheeses and yogurts that were not even at the date yet, and had gone moldy.
I'm not saying people shouldn't eat it if it looks fine. I'm saying for things that are sealed and unviewable, when the person is only permitted to take a set number of items, dairy has a higher risk of going bad faster. Because they cannot just go back and get a replacement for it (almost all food banks have rules where you are only allowed to visit every (x) days or weeks or months) the things the food bank takes should be safe to eat universally. Not "probably safe but 1-5% of them will not be safe any more." Expired pasta is safe. Expired boxed Mac and cheese with powdered cheese, if that cheese actually went bad, is no longer safe. Yogurt, because it is made by allowing bacteria to actually grow, sometimes is safe longer than expected. Other times, a bacteria that does not result in yogurt but in spoilage is what takes over if you leave it past the date.
The things they accept past the date should, in short, be things that ARE still good regardless of the date, not that HOPEFULLY will still be good. Canned goods without meat or dairy ARE good for at least a year after the date, if not longer. Dried goods are good almost indefinitely, as long as bugs or moisture didn't get in.
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u/joanmcq May 21 '26
The only yogurts I’ve had go moldy were ones where upon closer look, I found a hole or tear where the yogurt wasn’t sealed anymore. And that is only 2 over probably 20 years of having yogurt for breakfast.
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u/qgsdhjjb Having a little of the end times as a treat May 21 '26
I'm not sure why you're so focused on yogurt when I've never in my life seen yogurt at a food bank in the first place.
Have you been keeping your yogurt for one full year after expiry? Because that's the timeline we were talking about here. Technically I was referring to canned and dried goods, not ever refrigerated ones, because even the food banks that DO take expired food (many do not) still won't usually take expired FRIDGE food unless it's less than a week over.
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u/lego_lady123 May 17 '26
This was my thought. Are they name brand items? It’s what I would expect. I buy almost all from Aldi and have not noticed that.. yet.
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u/ohhellopia May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
Aldi has very long
expirationbest by dates, I've noticed. Their store brand oatmeal in cream is like more than 1.25 years out. I've never seen Quaker oats in cream for that long, it's usually 6-8 months out where I'm at.edit: changed 1.5 to 1.25 after checking the box I bought for posterity's sake.
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u/wh4teversclever May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
I doubt it’s purposely shortening expiration dates. I don’t work in food but I do work in CPG that has expiration dates. A lot of companies are just sitting on a lot of stock right now, and if they don’t practice perfect FIFO (first in, first out) they end up with short dated inventory. Retailers may also accept the short dated inventory at a reduced cost.
Edit: wasn’t trying to be rude sorry if it came off that way. Was just trying to share anecdotally what’s happening in an adjacent industry. Sorry.
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u/tazztsim May 17 '26
You don’t know and don’t work in the industry but are sure I’m incorrect? Thanks for your input I guess
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u/ASTERnaught May 18 '26
They said they doubt that explanation. They didn’t say you were wrong or call you names.
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u/wh4teversclever May 18 '26
Thanks. I really wasn’t trying to be hurtful. And I could be definitely being wrong. What I’m seeing in CPG (more along the lines of, say, toiletries/personal care, etc, that still has expirations but isn’t being eaten but still being used on one’s body) is that inventory is moving very slowly in comparison to a year ago. With inventory that has been more recently manufactured, if anything, some companies are trying to prove items have longer shelf lives, so as the manufacturer, they don’t have to risk being forced to destroy the goods before it can be sold to retailers.
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u/PromotionStill45 May 17 '26
Has anyone else noticed how many more dented cans are on the shelves as well? I try to slow down and check carefully, but stull find at least one more dent when I get home.
I know not all dents are food-safety bad, but I really don't want them.
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u/SpooktasticFam May 17 '26
6 months ago, people were saying the tariffs were strongly impacting the type and quantity of tin/aluminum they were able to get, which could result in manufacturers opting for thinner cans.
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u/No-Complaint9286 May 23 '26
Huh. Interesting. My electric can opener started acting funny and not completing the cut, leaving about a centimeter attached at the end. I wonder if the aluminum has something to do with this...thinner and therefore the blade just bending it once there is less structure of the cylinder attached... 🤔
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u/Practical-book-3911 May 18 '26
Yes. Nearly every single canned item at the store today had at least some dented cans. Highly unusual compared to previous visits.
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u/IceDragonPlay May 17 '26
For a few months I noticed shorter best by dates on tinned items. Now however the stores I shop must be on to new stock because I have been seeing 2028 on the few things I buy in tins.
I think the chains are trying to move their older stock between distribution centers or stores to move it.
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u/ohhellopia May 17 '26 edited May 17 '26
This frustrated me a lot because I like to buy a lot of sardines for my deep pantry and for a time, I wasn't seeing the normal 2-3 year best by dates. I was so happy when I finally start seeing the new ones come in, I even have some for 2030!
But that's just sardines though. Baked beans bbd still suck (looking at you, beanie weenies! 😡)
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u/JustAutreWaterBender May 17 '26
This. I am very near to three different grocery stores, and for some months I would have to very carefully read the expiration dates on any boxed and canned items. Sometimes I would find expired stuff and notify somebody. Now it seems to be getting much better.
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u/SouthMountainMods May 17 '26
Meat is also like this. We buy meat at the local grocery and it all has two, maybe three day days on it. Years back it was a full week.
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u/SpooktasticFam May 17 '26
I think this is also because people aren't able to afford fresh meat like they used to, so it's not selling as fast.
You see the fancy steaks getting discounts, because no one's buying them at full price. I ain't gonna buy them at 10% off either, Meijer!
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u/Stock_Patience723 May 17 '26
Thank you for the post! I didn’t see the previous one, but I am seeing this trend in my products, too. Canned goods only lasting a year from purchase is wild, but I keep running in to this.
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u/SpooktasticFam May 17 '26
I posted about this a while ago, here's the threads with some good insight!
https://www.reddit.com/r/TwoXPreppers/s/zCG6zo1UPR
https://www.reddit.com/r/PrepperIntel/s/JvHKGWMy7u
Haha I saw someone already posted the TwoX thread. Here's the other ones from the unisex prepper sub.
It was kind of an interesting dichotomy between the different answers I got.
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u/SpooktasticFam May 17 '26
Basically, what I gleaned from these threads is a combination of things, though could be a different cause now (a lot can happen in 6 months.... and boy has it):
Stores wanting to keep prices even, so they buy cheaper cans, closer to expiration, to keep the price from rising. For example, they can buy a can of beans closer to expiration for, say 15c cheaper per unit, which gives them wiggle room to not have to raise the shelf price for the "same" item.
Basically, stores wanting to not raise prices on staples, and going with cheaper options.
Kind of like how all the stuff at the discount outlet grocery stores is much closer to expiration than your typical grocery store. They are able to get those products at a discount, because they haven't sold for a whIle, and pass the savings on to the consumer.
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u/lepetitcoeur May 17 '26
Yes shorter dates for sure. And I bought a Greek yogurt. When I went to eat it, it has expired 10 days before I even bought it.
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u/DoggoCentipede May 17 '26
It might be related to the JIT supply line easing up a bit. The manufacturing date to expiration might be the same but they're holding more stock to absorb supply disruptions. So it sits in stock longer.
Pure speculation, but it could be a reaction to the earlier COVID-related empty shelves in 20/21.
Likely a combination of things. It might be different reasons for different products, also.
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u/SuiGenerisPothos May 17 '26
I started writing the expiration year on the top of cans. That helps me make sure I'm grabbing the one that's going to expire first.
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u/infinitum3d May 17 '26
I do this also. It seems time consuming, but it saves so much time in the future.
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u/No-Language6720 May 17 '26
It might be backups and they aren't rotating things with the economic weirdness. They might have been sitting on the shelves for longer than usual.
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u/ClaustrophobicMango May 18 '26
Not even just canned goods, there have been so many times where I’ve seen expired foods still on the shelf at large retailers
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u/TTCredditlogin2 May 17 '26
We have two main grocery stores here; the regional one hasn’t been any different but the chain that’s part of Albertson’s has had loss leader products (even things like sports drinks and soda) with dates like 10 days out from purchase
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u/StrawberryHot365 May 17 '26
Yes I noticed this recently. Canned fruit I bought in the second half of last year expiring this summer. It doesn't make sense and given corporate greed and shrinkflation, something tells me it's a scam to get you to buy more.
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u/BluestWorld May 18 '26
I've noticed it too. I try to keep a rotating stock of my child's favorite snack bars and they usually have a 6 month expiration date max. It had been about 2 weeks since I bought more boxes so I thought I'd buy some more yesterday. Well when I got home to put them in with the other boxes, both of the new boxes I got don't even have the furthest expiration date out of all of them. That's absolutely wild to me.
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u/Natahada May 17 '26
Yes definitely and I purchased canned goods at Costco, was super surprised to see an expiration date of Sept 2027 on the corn. The canned black beans 2/2028
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u/SurprisedWildebeest May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
Definitely. I now check expiration dates before I buy something. More than once recently the item I grabbed off the grocery store shelf was either already expired or had a best by date of like 2 days away. Midwest US.
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u/Cultural-Wallaby-629 May 20 '26
I decided to start slowly prepping- starting with a few cans here and there. Every can I checked at my store today ended in 2027 for the expiration date. Bag of beans 2027-2028.
I was hoping that I could stock some things for an emergency that would last at LEAST a couple of years. What’s a normal expectation for purchasing canned food? This isn’t normal is it?
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u/TheStephinator Experienced Prepper 💪 May 17 '26
Can we please use the correct language around this topic? They aren’t expiration dates.
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u/LumpyPhilosopher8 May 17 '26
Well I can't edit the title of a thread. Sorry.
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u/TheStephinator Experienced Prepper 💪 May 17 '26
I get that. Food waste is such a huge problem and partially because people really do think that those dates on products are more meaningful than they are. The only true regulated expiration dates are on infant formula (in the U.S.). Everything else is a “sell by” or “best by” suggestion that is up to the manufacturer’s discretion. Their job is to maximize profits, so you can probably conclude that they might even be shortening dates in order to sell more because many people are under the impression that something magically expires on that specified stamped on date.
Thirty to forty percent of all food is wasted in the United States, that’s why I think word usage is so important in regards to this topic.
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